FEATURED ARTICLES ABOUT CREDIT QUALITY - PAGE 4

United Airlines said Monday that it paid off $972 million of the borrowings it used to exit bankruptcy a year ago and refinanced the remaining $2 billion, reducing interest costs. The new financing will save about $70 million annually before taxes, the Elk Grove Township-based carrier said. It includes a $1.8 billion term loan and a $255 million credit line. The refinancing marks another United milestone since it emerged from Chapter 11 protection on Feb. 1, 2006. The airline posted two consecutive profitable quarters after its exit and narrowed its loss in the fourth quarter as it raised fares and added more international flights.

WASHINGTON (Reuters) - Only about half of states collected as much in tax withholdings as they expected in April, even though collections grew 3.6 percent on average from a year-ago, according to data released on Friday The Liscio Report, an economic newsletter, said that the percentage of states that met their expectations for tax withholdings rate in April compared to more than 80 percent of states in March. April is typically a key month for the taxes withheld from employees' paychecks and paid directly to the government.

Jan 22 (Reuters) - Spirit Realty Capital Inc said it will merge with Cole Credit Property Trust II to create a commercial real estate firm with a combined enterprise value of $7.1 billion. The combined company, which will own or have an interest in 2,012 properties in 48 states, would be the second largest publicly traded triple-net-lease real estate investment trust in the United States. Triple net lease is a lease agreement where the tenant pays the property taxes, building insurance and maintenance in addition to rent.

NEW YORK (Reuters) - MF Global has sued 12 large banks, accusing them of restricting competition in the $25 trillion credit default swap market, the latest in a string of lawsuits alleging that banks impeded new entrants by blocking exchange trading of the contracts. The case, filed on Monday in the U.S. District Court in the Northern District of Illinois, follows similar suits filed by an Ohio-based pension fund, the Sheet Metal Workers Local 33 Cleveland District Pension Plan, and by a group of Danish pension funds in the same court.

By Daniel Wilchins and Carrick Mollenkamp May 17 (Reuters) - It's the biggest parlor game on Wall Street: Estimating how large JPMorgan Chase & Co's trading loss will be from a hedging strategy that went wrong. The biggest U.S. bank by assets has already disclosed $2 billion of paper losses, and Chief Executive Jamie Dimon said it could lose another $1 billion or more. The losses will grow, some traders say, because it appears JPMorgan has only sold a small portion of its position, leaving it vulnerable to price swings in a thinly traded market.

Northern Trust Corp.'s profits rose in the second quarter as the Chicago-based company was helped by higher trust, investment and other service fees in a strong market. But the results still fell short of analysts' expectations. Northern Trust, the area's biggest locally headquartered financial services firm, had net income of 78 cents a share, up from 73 cents a year earlier, but a nickel below the average estimate of 15 analysts surveyed by Bloomberg News. The miss, which was announced before the opening of the market, could put further pressure on Northern Trust's stock.

By Christine Stebbins CHICAGO, Jan 23 (Reuters) - The Farm Credit System, the government-backed lender that handles almost half of all loans to U.S. farmers, expects 2014 to be a solid year for agriculture despite industry concerns about declining grain prices and softening farmland values. "People who have been engaged in production agriculture for any length of time understand there are adjustments every year," Jill Long Thompson, head of the Farm Credit Administration which overseas the system, said in an interview.